Catching Tommy

Whichever armchair you sat in as a fan, it was hard not to identify with Thomas Voeckler. The Frenchman rode professionally for 18 years, notching up 45 wins, starting 20 Grand Tours and finishing 19. Fifteen were back-to-back Tours de France, during which he won the polka dot jersey and claimed four stage wins. And yet Voeckler is best remembered for his heroic yet ultimately doomed defences of the yellow jerseys he claimed in 2004 and 2011. Against all odds, Ti-Blanc, as the French called him – ‘little white’, on account of his pale skin and small stature – spent a total of 20 days in yellow but would finish the Tour no higher than fourth.

‘I made mistakes, but I prefer to come fourth rather than second if it means I can ride as I like – always attacking’

Whether mugging for the camera or teaching English fans French swearwords, Voeckler was a roguish presence in the peloton. Yet unlike many of his contemporaries, he emerged from a dirty era with a reputation as a rider who relied only on his natural talents and an uncommon degree of pig-headedness.

Le Chouchou, ‘the sweetheart’, became his other moniker bestowed by the French press.

Heavy expectations

‘To wear yellow the first time wasn’t scary because I didn’t know what it meant,’ says Voeckler, who today cuts a composed figure. ‘Then on the first rest day I couldn’t do my shopping without people asking